This invention relates generally to method and means for escaping from a building, at the outer side of the building, and more particularly to provision of a multi-functional door serving when closed to block escape from the building interior at an upper elevation, and when open to suspend a person being lowered to a safe level.
There is continual need for improvements in escape methods and apparatus, enabling a person on an upper floor of the building to safely escape, as in case of fire. This need is acute when a fire prevents downward escape at the building interior, and where there are no fire escape steps attached to the exterior of the building.
It is a major object to provide a highly useful and simple method and apparatus to enable such escape, and downward travel at the building exterior. Basically, a multi-functional safety door is provided at an upper level or upper floor level of the building, the door located at the side of the building to be swung open for opening the way to escape from the building, and for suspending a person being lowered to safe level. The method includes the steps:
a) providing a safety door extending between a passage in the building and the building exterior, the door extending upwardly from a location proximate the passage floor,
b) supporting the door to open outwardly away from the passage, thereby opening the passage to the building exterior, allowing a person to walk out of the passage to the building exterior,
c) providing descent equipment including a cable or cables, for support by the door, and to move outwardly with the door so as to become located above the void below the opened door at the building exterior,
d) whereby a person in the passage may easily access the descent equipment and may be controllably lowered downwardly in the void at the building exterior, while supported by the door.
It is another object to provide for attachment of the descent equipment to the building occupant before the occupant steps outwardly from the passage into a position above the void.
Yet another object is to provide for hinge attaching the door to a frame, which is in turn attached to the building.
A further object includes providing a safety barrier barring the person against stepping from the passage to the building exterior when the door is in opened condition, until the barrier is moved into non-barring position.
An additional object includes provision of a holder on the door to temporarily support the person at the building exterior, until that person operates the descent equipment. Such a holder may take the form of a hand hold, and/or a foot support, on the door.
The descent equipment may advantageously include a rotor carried by the door for entraining the lowering cable or cables; and a control cable may be provided to be manually operated by the occupant for controlling his descent. A supply of such control cable can be located at the location of the descending person, during the descent.
As will be seen, the safety barrier is located to be initially displaced from barring position to allow the person to step outwardly from the passage, and the barrier is allowed to return to said barring position after the person has stepped outwardly to be supported by the door. After the barrier is displaced from escape barring position, the door is opened to project at a position generally perpendicular to a side of the building, and the door is retained in that position.
The door can also be used to suspend a rescuer to travel upwardly at the building exterior, to a level for rescue of a person seeking to escape from an upper level in the building.
Apparatus providing for escape from a fire in a building comprises:
a) a safety door extending between a passage in the building, and the building exterior, the door extending upwardly from a location proximate the passage floor,
b) the door supported to open outwardly away from the passage, thereby opening the passage to the building exterior, allowing a person to walk out of the passage to the building exterior,
c) and descent equipment including a cable or cables located to be supported by the door and to become located above the void below the opened door at the building exterior,
d) whereby a person in that passage may access the descent equipment, to be controllably lowered downwardly into the void at the building exterior while supported by the door.
In this regard, the descent equipment is typically located to be accessed and attached to that person before that person steps outwardly from said passage into a position above the void.
A further object is to provide means to enable unlocking and opening of different of the escape doors, in a building, said means selected from the group:
i) a smoke responsive or detecting door unlocking control,
ii) a manually operated door unlocking control,
iii) an electrically responsive door unlocking control.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention, as well as the details of an illustrative embodiment, will be more fully understood from the following specification and drawings, in which: